Haunted by the death of his sister Merle, psychiatrist Kenneth Paul Rosenberg takes on the role of documentary filmmaker to examine a national health crisis in the US. Bedlam follows personal stories of people living with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and other chronic mental health issues with a television-style precision. Bedlam describes the deinstitutionalization triggers pulled in the mid- and late 20th century (which occurred in Canada as well) to create this ‘bedlam’ on an inter/national scale. Created over the course of five years, Bedlam takes us inside Los Angeles County’s overwhelmed and vastly under-resourced psychiatric ER; a nearby jail warehousing thousands of patients; and people suffering from severe mental health issues in their homes and homeless encampments, where silence and shame often worsen the suffering.

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De-institutionalization On Both Sides Of The Border

How has de-institutionalization shaped Toronto? Have we fared any better in the practice of de-institutionalization than our US counterparts? The history of de-institutionalization in our city has led to the Mad Pride movement, shaped the neighbourhood of Parkdale (and others in the GTA) and continues to alter hospital emergency rooms, shelter systems and community-based harm reduction centres. In witnessing how the United States systems have been affected in the documentary Bedlam, we will use this film as a counterpoint to reflect on where we have been and where we are going here at home.

LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Workman Arts would like to acknowledge the Indigenous land on which we are presently
located; Toronto comes from the Kanien’kéha word Tkaronto, which can be translated as “where the trees meet
the water.” It is part of traditional territories of many nations: the Huron Wendat, the Haudenosaunee, and
the Anishinaabe and the Mississaugas of the New Credit.

Workman Arts recognizes this is an ongoing dialogue; we attempt to honour the histories
of this land by sharing our space with all people—those Indigenous to Turtle Island and those from all over
the world.